Aftermath
by Alstroe
Summary: Did Riza ever thank Al for his role in saving her life in episode 19? Slight Roy/Riza, especially in the first chapter
1. The Aftermath

As soon as he had asked her to get help for Havoc, he closed his eyes and passed out. She panicked. "Alphonse!" she snapped.

"Yes?" He was wringing his metal hands, and looked to her nervously.

"Uh…" She ran her hands through her hair. Why were there only two of them? She didn't want to leave the Colonel alone, but… "Go find medical help. As quickly as possible."

"Uh, okay!" Alphonse said, tearing through the doorway.

Riza took a deep breath and shook herself. It sounded like Havoc was hurt even worse than the Colonel. She shook his shoulder gently, then a bit harder. "Colonel. Come _on_, Colonel, wake up!"

He stirred a bit, then opened glazed eyes. She sighed in relief. "Colonel, I'm going to go find Havoc. I'll be right back. Try not to pass out. Okay?" Riza gave his shoulder a squeeze.

"Yes," he said finally. "Go help… Havoc…" And she was off, sprinting down the hall to find Havoc.

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><p>After ten minutes, Riza was ready to pull her hair out. She <em>had <em>to get back to the Colonel, and Havoc would not die on her watch. But then she spotted a tiny drop of blood on the other wise pristine floors. She walked up the hallway, looking for more. She spotted three more drops, all leading up the hallway- _the Colonel's blood_- and she broke into a sprint. She turned a corner and almost slipped on the slick tile floor. Funny, she thought, it's barely even wet.

Seeing a doorway a few feet away, she stepped carefully on the tile before poking her head into the room, daring to hope. Yes! There he was.

But… She couldn't bear to think it, but… what if he was… he was so pale…

She ran to Havoc's side and felt for a pulse- it was weak and too fast, but there. She raised her hand to his mouth and felt warm air hitting her palm- he was breathing, too. Only then did she relax and scan his body for wounds. His abdomen was bloody, so bloody she almost couldn't make out the burns covering it. The Colonel, she realized. He cauterized the wound.

Riza sat back and chewed on her lip. Should she move him? Try to signal Alphonse and the medical team?

It had been about fifteen minutes, she guessed. They should be here soon. So gently, gently, she dragged Havoc closer to the door, where she could keep an eye on his chest, rising and falling, before starting to yell for Alphonse. Hopefully they could follow the sound of her voice, and if there were any more homunculi, they would've attacked already.

So Riza waited.

* * *

><p>It was only minutes before military personnel were there with Havoc. The sight of them brought tears to Riza's eyes. "Thank you," she gasped. And thank you, too, Alphonse, she thought. Wherever the boy was now, she was grateful. Between watching Havoc's breathing slow and thinking about the Colonel, Riza had been in agony for the wait.<p>

One of the men nodded to her and then turned away. She tapped on the man's shoulder. "And there is someone with the Colonel…?"

The man nodded again and Riza felt pure relief. Then he turned away again, a dismissal. But Riza didn't care. Havoc was safe, she saw that with her own eyes. Now she needed to get to the Colonel. Riza stood on unsteady legs and ran back down the hall.

When she arrived in the large white chamber a medical team was putting the Colonel onto a stretcher and talking about IVs for the ride to the hospital. As soon as she came into the room, she stopped and they stared at her. Riza was disheveled and sweaty and worried out of her mind, but she took a deep breath and spoke clearly.

"May I ride in the ambulance with Colonel Mustang on the way to the hospital? He is my commanding officer, and I'd like to tell him about the condition of Second Lieutenant Havoc when he wakes up." When, not if, she thought, pushing worries about the blood, _too much blood, _coating the soles of her boots aside.

The team took another look at the woman and one of them nodded. "As long as you don't disturb him."

Riza saluted, barely able to keep the smile from showing through.

* * *

><p>Minutes later, they were on the ambulance, but most of the team had stayed at the laboratory, save one man named Tom.<p>

"The Second Lieutenant here is much worse for the wear. Colonel Mustang will be fine on the ride to the hospital, and if he isn't, alert Tom and he'll fix him up." The man was easygoing and Riza trusted him. So she sat alone with the Colonel in the back of the vehicle while Tom drove. Before the ambulance had left, the medical team attached IVs to his arms, and Riza had clenched her teeth. _He wouldn't need those if I had managed to protect him, _she thought. The same easygoing man had noticed her distress.

"Don't worry, miss. Only a precaution."

The Colonel looked even worse in the dim light of the ambulance and with those tubes attached to him, Riza thought. He was still unconscious. Riza sighed. At this, his eyelashes fluttered, but he didn't stir. She grasped his hand.

"Oh, Colonel. When will you ever learn to stay out of trouble?"

She lowered her forehead to his chest and took a deep breath of the scent of his military uniform. She was all too aware she could be accompanying him to the morgue today, instead. But he was safe. He was alive. So was Havoc. And right now, that was all that mattered.


	2. Thanks

I'm writing strange little oneshots a lot recently, seems like. This could be seen as a part 2 to Aftermath, so I'm posting it as such.

Anyway, enjoy!

* * *

><p>Al was waiting in the lobby of the hospital when Riza rushed in. She paused when she saw Alphonse.<p>

"Oh, hello, Alphonse," she said, her eyes questioning.

"Brother said he had a report to give. I told him the Colonel wouldn't even be awake yet but Ed insisted. I think he really wanted to see if the Colonel was alright."

"Oh." Riza's eyes softened; she was touched by Ed's show of loyalty and concern for the Colonel. Edward came bursting out of the Colonel's room a moment later.

"Is he okay?" Riza asked him anxiously.

"Yeah. He's still asleep, but the doctors say he'll be fine."

Riza let out a sigh of relief.

"Come on, Al, let's go!" Ed called, back to his old self after finding out the Colonel would be okay.

"Actually, Al, could I talk to you?" Riza asked.

"Just a minute, Brother."

"Okay, just don't take forever."

Riza sat next to Al. "Thank you," she whispered. She cleared her throat and her voice grew stronger. "Thank you for saving my life. I wasn't thinking clearly."

Al watched the Lieutenant. "I don't want anyone else to die."

She laughed a little. "Me neither."

Riza put a hand on Al's knee, ignoring the chill of the metal, and then rose to go visit the Colonel. But before she left the room, she stopped again. "Alphonse?"

"Yes, Lieutenant?"

"I love him." Her voice was little more than a scared whisper.

"I know."

Riza closed her eyes. "You won't tell anyone? Not even Edward?"

"I'll keep your secret," he said.

Riza released a sigh. "Thank you." She smiled at Alphonse and hurried into her superior officer's room.

Al stood up and started after his brother. He chuckled a little bit. _It's not like I even _need_ to tell anyone. They can see it for themselves, if they know how to look._

And he rejoined Edward, wondering if someday he would find a love of his own.


End file.
